We’d love to have our paper back
Dear Editor,
I read with much interest the letter in last weeks paper by Tom Janicki. Well written and scary to think of what has been happening to newspapers. I have first hand knowledge—a few years ago after the passing of our longtime publisher and editor, we lost our paper in Romeo. Others tried to bring it back, but it’s just not the same.
I recently read an article that said nearly one third of all print publications will be gone.
However the smaller weekly newspapers are doing better than expected, because they are often the only source of reporting for local communities. But they do struggle.
There are many reasons for this decline. Ad budgets, inflation and lack of innovation are part of the problem. Another issue is the consumers themselves. People simply feel overstimulated. To many, it feels like there’s too much news to bother keeping up with, that it all concerns issues that are depressing and that we are helpless to change.
Local news has suffered in many communities; we’d love to have our local newspaper back. Local news reporting for every community is important and impactful.
Without strong newspapers, local newspapers, daily newspapers there are real consequences. “Losing the News,” found that corporate and government misconduct flourishes when the quality and quantity of local reporting declines. Meanwhile, citizens become less politically informed and engaged, which also impacts the efficiency and effectiveness of local governance. In addition, they found communities that were already underserved by local media, like low-income, rural communities and those which are majority people of color, are the most impacted by its decline.
Besides the local impact, the absence of local news means many are primarily consuming national news. This shift has been shown to increase polarization. For example, polarization in Congress has increased in the past 20 years. Without local news, people are more likely to rely on partisanship alone to vote, resulting in less split-ticket voting and fewer wins for moderate candidates at all levels of government, meaning more potential wins for extreme candidates.
Another major factor in this issue is social media: 50% of U.S. adults “sometimes” or “often” turn to social media rather than traditional publications for their news.
In one survey of journalists, the vast majority said that social media harms the industry, blaming digital platforms for spreading misinformation and delivering unbalanced views. While some of the news consumed on social media is from the accounts of reputable publications, much of it comes from content creators who may not have the credentials to report accurately on important issues or understand the reliability of posts they reshare.
The solutions needed to save local journalism, and traditional media as a whole, are twofold. First, we need to directly aid these publications through government action and philanthropic efforts before they go under. There is no point in having local news organizations if they do not have the resources for quality reporting and, unfortunately, many publications cannot support themselves in the short term. One way to accomplish this is to make it clear to your local representatives that the free press is important to you–ask them to support bills at the state and national levels that will help the failing industry.
Finally, the best way to help is to be engaged! Buy a subscription to your local newspaper and read it regularly. Next time you’re looking for a gift for someone, give the gift of journalism and buy them a digital subscription or print subscription to your local newspaper.
When you vote, look to local coverage to inform your decisions, if you’re lucky enough to have it, rather than purely relying on partisanship. Local papers often provide unique insight into a candidates interests.
I thank Mr Janicki for his letter which helped me investigate the need for local papers.
Thanks for doing what you do, and remember to support your newspaper.
— Rita Kurmer
Washington Twp.
